Does Israel Pay Compensation for War Damage? NIS 18.8 Billion by December 2024
NIS 18.8 billion paid in war damage compensation by December 2024, on the State Comptroller’s 2026 audit of the Tax Authority’s Compensation Fund.
NIS 18.8 billion in war damage compensation had been paid by December 2024, on the State Comptroller of Israel’s 2026 audit of the Israel Tax Authority’s Compensation Fund. NIS 15.1 billion of that went on indirect damage, which is business loss rather than physical damage to property. The figures are the State Comptroller’s own account of an Israeli government body’s payouts, drawn from the Tax Authority’s records and published in the Comptroller’s English abstract.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| NIS 18.8 billion | Compensation paid for war damage | To December 2024 |
| NIS 15.1 billion | The part of the payouts made for indirect damage | To December 2024 |
| NIS 17.7 billion | Balance held in the Compensation Fund | December 2024 |
| 525,000 | Indirect-damage claims filed | The war period covered by the audit |
| 59,000 | Direct-damage claims filed | The war period covered by the audit |
| About 197,000 | Indirect-damage claims filed, for comparison | The preceding eighteen years |
| 851 days | Average time to decide an appeal | As audited |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, Preparations and Activities of the Tax Authority Regarding Compensation for War Damages, Emergency series chapter 101, 2026, English abstract.
The Tax Authority paid NIS 18.8 billion in war damage compensation
The State Comptroller audits how the Israel Tax Authority administers the Compensation Fund, so the payment figures are an Israeli state audit body’s account of another Israeli body’s disbursements. The audit reports two heads of claim, and the money is concentrated in one of them.
- Direct damage: physical damage, reported by the State Comptroller as a separate head of claim with its own claim count.
- Indirect damage: business loss, which the State Comptroller records as accounting for NIS 15.1 billion of the NIS 18.8 billion paid to December 2024.
525,000 indirect-damage claims against 59,000 for direct damage
The State Comptroller published both claim counts alongside the corresponding figures for the preceding eighteen years, which are about 56,000 direct-damage claims and about 197,000 indirect-damage claims. The comparison is the audit’s own, and the two windows are of very unequal length.
The Fund’s NIS 17.7 billion balance fell NIS 1.1 billion short
The State Comptroller found that the Compensation Fund held NIS 17.7 billion against NIS 18.8 billion paid by December 2024. The same audit of the Israel Tax Authority records amounts paid above entitlement and amounts owed and not recovered, which are separate sums.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| NIS 17.7 billion | Compensation Fund balance | December 2024 |
| NIS 1.1 billion | Shortfall of the balance against payments made | December 2024 |
| NIS 3.1 billion | Paid above entitlement | As audited |
| NIS 1.9 billion | Owed and not collected | As audited |
| NIS 2.8 billion | Interest shortfall | 2011 to 2023 |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, 2026 audit of the Israel Tax Authority.
Appeals averaged 851 days, against 103 at the Justice Ministry
The State Comptroller measured the time from damage to a decision on eligibility and the time taken to decide an appeal, and set the Israel Tax Authority’s appeal average beside the Ministry of Justice’s. Both are the Comptroller’s own findings on Israeli government bodies’ handling of claims.
| Figure | What it counts | Period |
|---|---|---|
| 57 days, rising to 92 days | Lag from damage to a decision on eligibility | As audited |
| 851 days | Average time to decide an appeal, Tax Authority | As audited |
| 103 days | Average time to decide an appeal, Ministry of Justice | As audited |
| 31 rising to 3,090 | Households holding the optional insurance | Before the war, and as audited |
Source: State Comptroller of Israel, 2026 audit of the Israel Tax Authority.
The audit publishes no average payment per claim
The State Comptroller reports totals paid, claim counts by head of damage and handling times, and stops there. The same body publishes compensation figures for other schemes in separate audits, and those figures count something else.
- Not published in this audit: an average or median payment per claim.
- Not published in this audit: a breakdown of payments by locality.
- Not published in this audit: a count of claims rejected.
- A separate scheme: the State Comptroller recorded NIS 6 million allocated by government decision for special and exceptional cases among evacuees from Amona, Ofra and Netiv HaAvot, against which 26 claims were submitted, in its February 2023 audit of Israeli settlement point evacuations.
- A preparedness figure, not a compensation one: the State Comptroller counted about 3.2 million residents living in areas at risk in its 2022 audit of IDF preparedness for damage to hazardous materials facilities during combat events.
Which figures here may not be added together?
Every figure in the tables above comes from one document, the State Comptroller’s 2026 audit of the Israel Tax Authority, read in the Comptroller’s published English abstract. Direct and indirect damage are different heads of claim, so the 59,000 and the 525,000 count different things and are not one claim total. The NIS 15.1 billion may not be subtracted from the NIS 18.8 billion to produce a direct-damage payout, which the audit does not print. The NIS 3.1 billion overpaid and the NIS 1.9 billion uncollected are not the same money, and neither is a loss figure. The eighteen-year comparison figures carry the word “about” and stay approximations.
Questions readers ask
Does Israel pay compensation for war damage?
Yes. The State Comptroller reported NIS 18.8 billion paid in war damage compensation by December 2024 in its 2026 audit of the Israel Tax Authority’s Compensation Fund.
Which body pays the compensation?
The State Comptroller audits the Israel Tax Authority as the body administering the Compensation Fund and making the payments.
What is indirect damage?
The State Comptroller records indirect damage as a separate head of claim from physical damage, covering business loss, and reports NIS 15.1 billion paid under it to December 2024.
How many claims were filed?
The State Comptroller published 59,000 direct-damage claims and 525,000 indirect-damage claims for the war period.
How does that compare with earlier years?
The State Comptroller reported about 56,000 direct-damage claims and about 197,000 indirect-damage claims across the preceding eighteen years, a much longer window than the war period.
Did the Compensation Fund cover what it paid out?
The State Comptroller found a Fund balance of NIS 17.7 billion against NIS 18.8 billion paid by December 2024, a shortfall of NIS 1.1 billion.
How long does it take to be found eligible?
The State Comptroller measured a lag of 57 days from damage to eligibility, rising to 92 days.
How long does an appeal take?
The State Comptroller put the average appeal at 851 days, against 103 days at the Ministry of Justice.
Was any money paid above entitlement?
The State Comptroller reported NIS 3.1 billion overpaid and NIS 1.9 billion owed and not collected.
How many households held the optional insurance?
The State Comptroller recorded 31 insured households before the war and 3,090 as audited.
How much did a typical claimant receive?
The State Comptroller publishes no average or median payment per claim in this audit, and no count of claims rejected.
Which period do these figures cover?
The State Comptroller states payment and balance figures to December 2024, and the interest shortfall of NIS 2.8 billion across 2011 to 2023.
Sources
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2022. IDF Preparedness for Damage to Hazardous Materials Facilities during Combat Events. Chapter 107, English abstract. library.mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2023. Evacuation of Israeli Settlement Points in the Judea and Samaria Area and Treatment of the Evacuees. Interdisciplinary audit, February 2023. library.mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
- State Comptroller of Israel, 2026. Preparations and Activities of the Tax Authority Regarding Compensation for War Damages. Special report, Emergency series chapter 101, English abstract. library.mevaker.gov.il. Official or primary record.
